


Romantic Flight

by foolsama



Category: Avatar: Legend of Korra, How to Train Your Dragon (Movies)
Genre: F/F, Unresolved Romantic Tension
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-01-19
Updated: 2015-01-19
Packaged: 2018-03-08 06:45:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,627
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3199427
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/foolsama/pseuds/foolsama
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Remember when Astrid meets Toothless? Except this time it's Korra and Asami. From a Tumblr ask/prompt. </p>
<p>Character development arcs are roughly beginning of Book 1, before Asami's father's Ep 7 reveal.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Romantic Flight

Asami looked up from her supply bin and gasped in horror.

Avatar Korra was right there, watching her.

Asami's heart skipped so hard it hurt. _Korra's here?! Ok, be cool, play it cool - poise!_ The blood returned to her face.

"Korra! What- uhhh.. what are you doing here?" Asami pushed her hair back, put on a smile and raised an open hand.

"I wanna know what's going on." A vision of fierce, Water-tribe warrior tradition leapt off the rock she was perched on and started aggressively pushing Asami back. "Nobody just gets as good as you do. _Especially_ you. Not without training." The brown-haired girl's arms flowed effortlessly and in concert with her footwork as she moved through a determined dance. Pillars of rock burst from the ground, herding Asami backwards. "Start talking." Eyes the color of a clear winter sky pierced straight through to Asami's soul. " _Now_."

Asami sized up her assailant, making sure her footing was solid. She allowed the girl to push her back. The Avatar was a fascinating figure: fur-lined boots, heavy pants and furs around her waist amplified an intimidating presence, caramel skin showed from bare arms, and her blue shirt hugged her form just enough to be distracting. Her flowing chocolate hair was contained by two bands on either side of her head, and another on the crown of her head, forcing long tails. The rest may have been contained only by the strongest of wills. The giant rocks being unnaturally thrown around merely seemed to compliment the Avatar's presence. Asami had to prevent her thoughts from straying too far off-task. She desperately tried to come up with an answer to this line of inquiry that wouldn't cause pain.

Asami's eyes narrowed. Strategies raced through her mind, and fell off as the next logical steps presented themselves as invalid.

“Are you you training with someone?” The other girl pressed on with her verbal – and elemental – assault.

“No, no I – ” No help yet from the engineer's cortex. She found herself backed into a newly-created rock wall.

“And what is _this_ ,” Korra grasped at the riding outfit Asami has made herself.   _It needed work yet,_  Asami thought with some embarrassment, _but maybe this line of thinking could be-_

A brief crashing sound came from just around a boulder. Light snuffling came next. Asami's eyes darted to the other side of the small crater they were in. It was a semi-circular depression in the surrounding forested hills, almost like an arena; walled-off with solid rock. A few thin pines reached to the sky to join their brethren outside, and a small, shallow pond sat in the middle. _Oh, here we go.._

“Naga?” Korra paused her earthen assault and craned her neck to listen.  She began advancing around the visual obstruction the boulder presented.

“Uh you're right - you're right!” Asami seized on the line of thought offered by Korra. “I've been making … outfits.” Asami attempted to feign dejection and disappointment, and positioned herself in front of Korra. The other girl glared at her, and shoved her aside. “You got me, it's time everyone knew.” Asami grabbed Korra's hand and placed it again on the riding jacket's collar, trying to force a hold. “Go ahead, drag me back, take-OW.” Korra grabbed Asami's hand, and twisted it roughly. “Why would you do that,” Asami wondered aloud.

Korra stiffened her arm and sent Asami sprawling back, and over a small rock she lifted behind her. “That's for the lies." Korra bent another rock up underneath Asami's feet, finishing the takedown. "And _that's_ for .. everything else." Asami was on the ground, so she couldn’t be positive – but did the Avatar blush a little just then?

Avatar Korra was very much a celebrity. There were other people in the world that could 'bend' of course – use their bodies and minds to control and direct one of the classic elements: earth, fire, air, and  in Korra's home nation, water. Korra was unique however, in that she had the potential (if not the training, yet) to bend all four elements. She was the Avatar – part human, part ten-thousand year-old spirit. A living embodiment of the Spirit and Physical worlds, continuously reincarnating among the four nations. Her role was to help maintain the balance – among humans, among nations – and among worlds. It was an enormous responsibility, and once fully realized, she would be powerful almost beyond comprehension. Blushing seemed incongruous. _Rather cute, though,_ was the strange thought occupying Asami's mind.

An animal's roar came from across the crater.

"Oh no – Korra, wait!" Asami threw herself on her feet and reached for Korra as a large, black, winged, shark-like creature barreled directly for them, threatening great violence with it's roar.

Korra gasped in shocked recognition. "Get down!" She threw Asami behind her, sending the poor girl sprawling once more. The warrior-woman began another dance, calling water to her and around her, like a chain whip gaining its lethal momentum. The reaction would normally be the correct one, if exceedingly suicidal. Dragons were never seen unless they were attacking, and this kind - a Night Fury - was considered the deadliest dragon in the world. _She doesn't understand!_

“NO!” Asami jumped up and tackled Korra before her and the dragon met.

"No - it's okay,” Asami assured Korra. “It's okay.” Asami placed herself between the winged reptile and the fallen warrior. “She's a friend," said Asami, directly at the dragon. The black beast halted its charge, and reared up, blinking at Asami in confusion. Asami looked to Korra. "You just scared him," she assures her.

Korra's blue eyes were wide in shock, and they darted between Asami and the now seemingly docile dragon.

"I scared _him_?" Korra scowled as the dragon growled lightly. "Asami, who.. is _him_?"

"Uh, Korra, Toothless.” Asami gestured to the dragon. Then to the girl. “Toothless... Avatar Korra." Asami placed a hand on the creature's snout, and looked to Korra with timid hope. The dragon hissed as Korra looked its way. Korra shook her head in disbelief. She got to her feet, and with another confused look at Asami, standing unmolested next to the most feared dragon known, she turned and ran.

"Well,” sighed Asami. Toothless cocked his head. “That could have gone better."

 

* * *

 

 

Avatar Korra crashed through the forest, running as fast as her legs could carry her.

_This can't be happening. Asami's in league with the dragons? Is that why she's so good with them in training? She never does seem to actually hurt them, does she? I have to warn the city._

As Korra vaulted a log in her path, she felt a large, painful pressure on her shoulders, and startlingly found herself vaulting much, much higher than she intended. She looked up - and screamed. A Night Fury had her in its grips, was flying up, and up... and up.  Korra had never screamed in fear before – she had no cause to. She screamed again when she looked down, and the ground seemed unreal as it fell away from her, with nothing under her boots.

The Avatar collected herself, and forced a slow breath. _No. Airbenders fly without fear._ She looked up again and took in more detail. There were straps attached to the dragon, and a set of shapely human legs on either side, in black hide pants, and knee-high boots. This was Asami's 'pet'. The dragon slowed as it neared the top of an exceptionally tall red pine. Korra felt the pressure on her shoulder release, and found a new unwelcome sensation as her midsection shook hands with a tree-branch. Korra grabbed hold of the branch before she tumbled to the ground, and held on.

"Asami! What are you doing? Asami!"  _She's trying to kill me!_ “Why are you doing this?”

"You have to give me a chance to explain." Asami sat astride the dragon, looking like she belonged there, damn her. The infamous daughter of Republic City's most prominent captain of industry was almost resplendent in what Korra could now tell was a riding harness. Black hide with red leather accents – _Asami always did know how to put together an outfit_ – hugged her frame, accentuating curves while remaining practical. Her long, wind-tossed raven-black hair hung unrestrained. Her almond-shaped eyes showed worry not for herself – but for Korra. She wanted to hate her, but the girl just made her feel .. weird.

"I'm not listening to _anything_ you have to say!" Korra began to move, hand-over-hand across the branch, towards the tree's center. She began lining up her decent, avoiding eye contact with her two kidnappers.

"Then I won't speak." Asami tossed her hair, the show-off. She held out both her hands, showing the palms. “Let me show you.” The light-skinned girl atop a dragon held out a hand for her. “Please, Korra."

The Avatar huffed and pulled herself atop the branch. _Hmph. Ground, or traitor._   _She looks genuine enough.._ Cautiously, she approached the offending pair, and the dragon gave her another small growl for her effort. She smacked Asami's offered hand away and gingerly settled herself astride the dragon, behind the other girl. She studiously kept her hands on her own thighs.

Korra and the dragon eyed each other warily. Dragons did not speak, per se, but it was well known they understood much.

Asami took up the reigns, and calmly vocalized instruction. "Toothless... down. Gently." _She named it?_ Korra found the edges of the saddle to cling to as 'Toothless' spread his wings. Slowly, air caught spanned leather, and they trio began to rise off the tree bough. "See?” Asami said. “Nothing to be afraid of – aaAAAH Toothless! What is wrong with you?!"

The dragon pumped his wings, and used the tree as a catapult to sling them in to the air.  Korra found herself screaming again, and started grasping for Asami as the forces of both wind and gravity began sliding her off the back of the mount. She grabbed hair, shoulders, chest, and finally wrapped her arms tightly around Asami's waist, scrunching her eyes closed as they thundered up, and beyond the forest, over the cliffs, and out to the ocean sky.

"I'm so sorry!” Asami was yelling into the wind. “He's not usually like thi- oh, no!"

Toothless rolled, and dove. Korra's shrieking was almost a match for the Night Fury's trademark wail as they rocketed three thousand feet towards the ocean's surface.  A split second before they sunk beneath the turbulent waves of the southern sea, the dragon pumped his wings, and twisted – saving itself from hitting the surface, but dunking his riders in a rude attempt to unseat them. Toothless bobbed his passengers twice more, like a skipping stone across the briny deep.

“Toothless!” Asami spat out water. “We need her to like us!” admonished Asami. The dragon righted itself, and then with a momentous heave, pumped them back in to another climb. “Bad dragon!”

_ 'Like us?' What does that mean? _

The Night Fury wasn't having it. They climbed – higher, faster – now twice the height they were before. The dragon slowed their ascent, and leveled off – and begun a succession of barrel rolls. “And now the spinning.” Asami seemed to know where this was headed. She sounded sad about it. _That's probably not good._ Korra kept her eyes squeezed shut, and held on tighter. “Thank you for nothing, you useless reptile,” Asami sighed.

Toothless aimed his flight down, again, and the three of them were diving – and still spinning. Korra could feel her lunch insisting on a reprise.

It took all her courage, but she pushed her face in to Asami's hair, and forced out a confession. "I'm sorry - OK? I'm sorry - just get me off of this thing!"

Korra let out a gasp as the dragon unfurled his wings, stiffened them – and suddenly the dive was over. They hung in the air – floating effortlessly in space. She didn't dare move. Korra felt Asami's head move back to look at her, and the dragon slowly, gently rose. The Avatar opened her eyes.

 

* * *

 

Asami looked back on Korra, and noted the tense, fearful cower, and squeezed eyes. As they leveled off, and those lids opened tentatively, Asami smiled, and turned again to the front. She tossed her hair to the side, so it wouldn't be in Korra's face as they flew.

They were drifting, Toothless letting them glide halfway between ocean and clouds. The brisk, arctic air at 2 thousand feet would have been chilly, if not for the adrenaline of the last few acrobatics, and the warmth of a certain body from behind stoking further warmth from her own. The shoreline below was one never seen by other humans – _not even the Airbenders, with their gliders_. Below, jagged basalt peaks powder-coated in pink and orange met a purple and pink mirror, flaked with chunks of floating aquamarine. The glowing disk on the horizon was dim enough to look directly at. Above was an ethereal display of wispy fire. T _his is what I want to show her. This is power, majesty – freedom. We can have this, and not live in fear of them._ Asami nudged her passenger. _This is life among the clouds, and I want to share it with you, when you're ready._

She felt Korra release the death grip from her waist, and sent a hand to again move her fluttering hair from their faces. Korra's eyes drank in all the splendor around them, and met Asami's. The colors of the sunset reflected back at her in the dimming light. Asami threw her most comforting smile to reassure the Avatar’s safety, and raised an eyebrow in silent query. She received the barest of smiles in return - hesitant trust, as the Avatar appeared to be making the best of a bad situation. Asami forgot to hide her blush.  _Maybe some water will make her feel more comfortable._

The clouds became less defined, and mist-like as she had Toothless skirt their edges. The dark grey underbelly gave way to brilliant reflected light as the dragon rose through a break in the clouds.

Korra took a calming breath, and let go of Asami completely. She eased her hands in to the gaseous form of her home element. Asami circled them up over the top of the cloud, in a slow loop.

Above the clouds was an entirely different vista. Deep gray mist, with hints of the fading carmine sun created vast fractals of fluffy terrain, while the deepening twilight sky displayed endless swatch of green and purple – the Southern Lights. A lifetime of looking up at the heavens from the ground could not prepare one for the impossible magnitudes up close. For as far as the eye could see, in every direction, was a tussled blanket of wool below, and an openness above, made comprehensible only by the miles-long snakes of aurora.

Asami checked Korra again, and couldn't help but allow herself a smile. The Avatar was no longer there - just a teen-aged girl, still susceptible to child-like wonder. Asami felt as though her heart was expanding as they sped among the skies. The wind in her hair, a powerful, but trusted dragon under her, and .. a friend? _This is the life I want._

They dove beneath the cloud cover again, and aimed themselves over Republic City. The lights of the world's largest metropolis presented itself wondrously – a monument to the human progress made only in the last few decades – a lot of it her father's work. _There's Future Industry Tower. Dad._ Pride added itself to Asami's basket of emotion, fit to burst.

Asami was startled at that moment when the Avatar hugged her from behind, and she’d swear it was the wind in her face, but her eyes welled up. Just a little.

"Alright. I admit it,” Korra said. “This is.. pretty cool."

 


End file.
